Review of "It's Me!"

It's Me is a picture book
featuring young Patricia, who dresses up as Princess Finula-Lily at first, then
as the evil witch Patrooshka, and finally as a mother with a baby. Her family
admires her beauty, then tells her how scary she is, and finally confirms what
a great mother she is. Her brother makes faces. The audio CD that comes with
the book features acting by both adults and young children who do a great job,
and also has music and sound effects that bring the story alive. The
performance on the CD is nicely done, and the illustrations by Isabelle Deceniere
are very sweet. Feminists might be concerned that the story uncritically
confirms female gender stereotypes, but one might defend the book as
representing these characters of princess, witch and mother as simply roles
that girls can adopt and then stop playing when they want. It's Me is
hardly an ideological tract, but it is a does have a great deal of charm, and I
think both boys and girls will enjoy it.

Christian
Perring, Ph.D., is Academic Chair of the Arts & Humanities Division
and Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College, Long Island. He is
also editor of Metapsychology Online Review. His main research is
on philosophical issues in medicine, psychiatry and psychology.